Me <3 my Harry Potter DVD set.

When Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 premiered last July, my friends and I felt it was the end of an era for us. That was it. No more movie installments in the series to look forward to each year. To cure our 'senti' mode, a suggestion was brought up. How about we marathon all eight movies the next time we had a get-together? Perfect! And so began less than six months of planning through Facebook.

All of that would’ve been last weekend. We initially planned to do nothing but watch all the movies in the span of two days.

Sadly, we forgot to bring a portable DVD player to the hotel where we were staying. So we decided to go food-tripping instead and took lots and lots of photos. On the bright side, guess who got herself a DVD set of all eight movies?:) One of my friends who’s now based in Dubai bought 4 sets, one for each of us who were based here in Philippines. (We're a group of five. She's the only one based abroad)

BEST. GIFT. EVER. Thank you, Gen. You truly made this reunion even more special.

Psyched for the long weekend.

My best girlfriends are arriving tomorrow and I can’t wait to spend the long weekend with them! Yup, that’s Happy Thanksgiving for me. We’re just staying in the city to hole up in some hotel while we catch up and make chika about everything that has happened for the past six months. Believe me we can talk endlessly for hours and still have something new to discuss about. I wish I can be more like them though… travelling every once in a while to de-stress. I was always ‘the one who never uprooted herself’. So by next year, mark my words, I’m making it a personal goal to travel more outside of Cebu.

Between running some errands and meeting with my girl friends, I’m hoping to squeeze sometime into catching up with New Girl. Zooey Deschanel is hilarious! Her quirkiness works for me because I see my sense of humor as being somewhat like Jess. Maybe I’m just too easy to please? I dunno. Even Winston is okay with me when he’s being panned by netizens for being nothing like Coach (the roommate in the pilot). But the best character for me, hands down, has to be Cece. Don’t you just love her deadpan sense of humor?

My sister, on the other hand, is catching up with Once Upon A Time. I’m glad because finally she can relate whenever I babble every time a new episode is on. She loves Charming James and Snow. Josh Dallas and Ginny (I prefer calling her that over Ginnifer) Goodwin have effortless chemistry. I cannot wait for more backstories regarding this main couple. It was cute how they were actually friends with Cinderella and her prince in the fairy tale world. My main ship though, is Graham and Emma. I hope the sheriff doesn’t kick the bucket anytime soon. Rumors are rife that they are killing off a character before the show goes on winter hiatus. Oh noes. My ship has to survive!

One thing off my culinary bucket list.

My sister realized that the only way to shut me up regarding my obsession with rice rolls is to actually make one for ourselves. So began our quest to make kimbap. It wasn’t easy. The ingredients were hard to find in our usual grocery stores. Thankfully, a friend of mine suggested ASSI Mart. I should’ve listened to her in the first place. It would have saved us the time and effort of grocery-hopping just to complete everything that we needed. 

Only two rolls sliced so far...

For a budget of less than a thousand, including the basic condiments, we were able to make 10 rolls. How’s that for eating kimbap to your heart’s content? :) Definitely saves me more money than ordering it from a Korean restaurant where a roll would cost you anywhere between P130 – P160 pesos. I just had this for dinner. ONLY THIS. So yes, I’m shutting up now.

The ingredients alone allowed us to make 9 rolls. NINE ROLLS!!!

I'm bringing some as my baon ^___^

In fact, I’m saving some as my office baon for later. How does a rice roll diet sound? Hehe! This is one of the good things that came out of me reading So Delushious. You get so inspired to cook. Can’t wait for our next culinary experiment!

Oh to be young and in-love!

Source: fuckyeahemmagraham.tumblr.com via Rose on Pinterest

Just when I’ve given up hope on my TV ‘ships, these two come to save the day. Hotch/Prentiss is a no-go on Criminal Minds while Gossip Girl writers can’t seem to make-up their minds about Dan/Blair (yes Humphrey, it’s probably about the ‘hairstyle’). Thankfully, the Sheriff/Emma interactions on Once Upon A Time are pure gold and definitely something to look forward to. I love how their story is playing out. It’s cute how he has this crush on her but she’s just nonchalant about it. And we’re not even on yet to the secret behind her birthright (she’s Snow White’s daughter) and his possible fairytale counterpart (I still stay, The Huntsman).

OUAT is one of my guilty pleasures this season. I thought I would hate it, but I have come to love their modern spin on the classic fairytales we all loved as kids. It sort of reminds me of Shrek with all these storybook characters interconnected in some way. Oh, and after seeing some spoiler pictures from the seventh episode, my love for these two above grew exponentially. How can you not love the adorable Jamie Dornan and Jennifer Morrison?

Confused? I suggest you check out the show if you can. I'm sure you will all love it as much as I do. :)

Elusive culinary experiment.

It frustrates me that we can never seem to complete the ingredients in making kimbap/gimbap. We’ve been on it since we tasted one during the Korean day celebration last month. Because I couldn’t stop blabbing about it, my sister figured it would be best if we tried to make our own. It was easier said than done. The nori sheets were easier to find but the bamboo mat was elusive. I couldn’t find any at the grocery store. This leaves us with no choice but to try a Korean grocery that my friend suggested. Hopefully we can have that accomplished this coming weekend.

The Seoul Restaurant's (@Gaisano Country Mall) Gimbap - P150 

I personally prefer it more than sushi since you can work with many variations on the filling. Plus it doesn’t need any sauce at all. Hopefully once we can perfect our own version I’ll get to bring one as my office baon.:) It’s a great diet… and not that messy.

Let Starbucks be the first to greet you… Happy Holidays!

Four stickers now and thirteen more to go. This #starbucks2012planner project is turning out quite well than I expected.Quite an achievement for someone who’s a first-time sticker collector.:) *wink* I considered doing Seattle’s Best first but ultimately decided against it since Starbucks had the better design when it came to the planners.

Four stickers, thirteen more to go...

The best part about this whole promo? The establishment’s well-patronized Holiday drinks are back in season! I now get Tina’s love for Toffee Nut Latte, although my personal favorite is the Peppermint Mocha frap. There’s something indescribable about these drinks that will leave you coming back for more.

Toffee Nut Latte for me,  Cranberry White Chocolate Mocha for my sis

I’m looking forward to completing all 17 of my required stickers before the year ends. It shouldn’t be that hard since my best friends are coming over to Cebu on the last week of November for a much-needed girl bonding. :)

Remembering our dearly departed

We finally made it to Cempark since I was on leave from work today. Ahhh, the downside of working for a BPO… paid time-offs don’t happen at the snap of a finger! :) To make the most out of my one day-off, we paid our respects to my grandma and my uncle, all the while secretly praying that we get no heavy downpour on our way to the cemetery. 

Now I can’t help but reminisce. Gone were the days when the entire family would troop to Memorial Park on November 1. We’d meet up with some relatives, spend the whole day chatting and catching up on each other’s lives. It was a welcome reprieve from whatever toxicity work had to offer. But now it’s different. Everyone’s just so busy. 

Occasional visits are all that we can offer our dearly departed nowadays. I won’t deny them that. It’s the least I can do after all the good things they did in their lifetime. We promised to be back over the weekend for a more solemn visit. Perhaps by then the weather would finally cooperate.